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Freaks
Welcome to the Freaks & Tweaks Wiki This wiki chronicles the adventures of our Savage Worlds: Supers Campaign. We meet very irregularly, but try to make it at least once per month. This is an original Iron Age campaign setting that takes place in a timeline where super powered beings first appeared in our world in the 1980's. Now, decades later, the children of the original supers (freaks) are being joined by new super powered beings born in research labs (tweaks), with both trying to find their place in a world that is using them to jumpstart the next step of human evolution. Campaign Overview In 1984, an astrological event showered the Earth with meteorites. Within 48 hours, major impacts were recorded around the globe. Most crash sites were limited to remote areas, so casualties were light. However, the crash sites were cloaked with a previously undiscovered type of radiation that scientists classified as Omega waves. The government quaranteened off the areas and brought in research teams to investigate. Small communities sprang up around the crash sites to support the research staff. Within a few months, researchers and locals started exhibiting special powers. Government policy towards these individuals, referred to by the press as Omegas, was to quarantine them for study, and to assess their threat to the general public. Most were rounded up, but some kept their powers hidden from society to avoid capture. In time, some Omegas would don disguises and use their powers to pursue their own agendas, some for good and some for selfish gain. Thus the first super heroes and villains came to be. While government policy was to capture all Omegas, good and bad, most local authorities turned a blind eye to the ones who helped them pursue the villains, mostly out of necessity since they lacked the power to take the villains down themselves. Public opinion was largely in favor of the Omegas, as the villains were largely kept in check and the heroes indeed seemed to be fighting for the betterment of society. That all took a turn for the worse, however, in 1991 when a major battle between teams of heroes and villains resulted in the destruction of several city blocks in Cratertown, VA. The high amount of civilian casualties enraged the general public, and they soon began calling for more regulation over the Omegas. In response to the public outcry, the government created a new special forces branch designed to capture renegade Omegas. The GAST (Government Anti-Special Task) squads were comprised of elite soldiers using new technology based on Omega science, as well as Omegas who willingly cooperated with the government in exchange for a small degree of freedom. Omegas that were captured had their identities registered in government databases and were conscripted to serve. Those who refused to serve were locked away. Heroes and villains, forced to unite against the GAST squads, formed unlikely teams in order to protect their own interests. Public opinion was mixed, as it was no longer clear who the good guys were. Heroes that they grew up cheering were now hunted down like dogs, while villains that they once reviled were now working with the full cooperation of the government. Meanwhile, rumors of horrific government sponsored experiments against the captured Omegas who refused to cooperate began to surface. In 1998, a team of pro-renegade Omegas investigated these rumors and uncovered the secret labs where the captured Omegas were being taken. Unwilling to get help from their GAST squad allies, they reached out to some of the renegade Omegas to determine once and for all what was going on. The truth that they found, was far worse than the rumors that were circulating. Entire government labs, under the direction of a defected Russian scientist Dr. Vladimir Markov, were dedicated to tapping into the source of the Omegas' powers and weaponizing it, through whatever means necessary. After seeing their comrades dissected, tortured, and subjected to horrific genetic experiments, all Omegas immediately stopped their cooperation with the GAST squads and united against the government. Outmanned, outgunned, and facing a massive public outcry over Dr. Markov's experiments, the government had no choice but to dismantle the GAST squads and create legislation that would allow Omegas to take up a peaceful place in society. In an effort to curry with Omegas, and the public, the president pardoned all Omegas of all crimes. The remnants of the GAST squads were integrated into local police departments to be used only in the event that an Omega posed an immediate threat to the public. All government research into Omega-based technology was deregulated, and Omega-based technology became the domain of corporations and independent research firms. In 2000, the Omega Bill of Rights passed, allowing Omegas to voluntarily register themselves in exchange for government benefits. Those who chose not to register were left alone, provided they obeyed the law and did not present a threat to the public. After years of conflict and distrust on both sides, the Omegas had a difficult time reintegrating into society. While the public disapproved of the way the government used and manipulated them, they were reluctant to accept them into society. Though they had legal protection as citizens, many of the Omegas separated themselves from Society and chose a life of segregation. Some chose to make a living in corporate life, helping to advance the cause of Omega research in ways that could benefit society. Occasionally, a disgruntled Omega would cause problems, but these were mostly self-policed by the Omega society... until 2012. In 2012, a militant group of Omegas, wanting an independent nation, led an attack into Cratertown, striking at several of the main Omegatech corporations trying to steal military technology they could use to build an army. The band was eventually put down by a secret strike team that was being developed by OmniCorp. This strike team, known as the Omni-Force, integrated Omegas with specially trained soldiers using Omegatech weaponry. The existence of the Omni-Force, while technically not illegal, sent shockwaves of fear and distrust throughout society. To the Omegas, it reminded them of the GAST squads, and they couldn't believe their own kind would have a part in bringing those days back. For the general public, it once again brought to light the fact that their government was woefully ill-equipped to defend themselves against a full-on Omega uprising. Meanwhile, the other corporations were realizing that they were dramatically behind on the tech curve compared to Omni-Corp. Within six months, government passed legislation that would allow licensed corporations to form their own strike squads. This addressed the public's fears by giving them an army that could defend them, while simultaneously addressing the Omega's fears of not putting that army directly in control of the government. Each corporation with a licensed team had to report to a government liason that would ensure that the corporations met a set of standards including that all their R&D was performed ethically. It is now 2014, and corporations are recruiting and breeding their own soldiers. Many of the recruits are children of the original Omegas whom, having special powers themselves, are looking for a way to integrate into mainstream society. Unfortunately, society still has not forgiven the Omegas of their past sins, often referring to them as freaks. Meanwhile, a new breed of soldier, normal humans by birth that have been enhanced by Omega technology, fills in the remaining ranks. The true Omega community looks down on them, often referring to them as tweaks. Now, whenever a job that requires one of these teams comes up, a bounty is offered by the government to be collected by the first team to complete the job. There is an intense rivalry among the corporations, and also independent teams of Omegas who try to make a living using their powers. Our campaign takes place in Cratertown, the site of one of the original meteor crashes, the center of many of the important historical events since the rise of the Omegas, and the center of all Omegatech research in the United States. Links *Characters *Organizations *Key Locations *Major Events *To-Do List *Suggestions Latest activity Photos and videos are a great way to add visuals to your wiki. Find videos about your topic by exploring Wikia's Video Library. Category:Browse